In terms of poverty
incidence, Romblon is the poorest province in Region IV and belongs
to the 10 poorest provinces in the country. During the past month,
this has brought renewed discussions among members of the Romblon
Discussion List (RDL). The greatest recipients of criticisms are the
elected officials.
ELECTED OFFICIALS
Expectations from
elected officials are very high and are rightly so. They are to make
sure that direction of the province development is in accordance with
the Provincial Physical Framework Plan (PPFP). They are to make sure
that: (1) public infrastructures are developed and maintained well;
(2) improve the economic condition of the province; (3) graft and
corruption is abated; (4) regulations are enforced (5) and get more
for the province in term of national legislative actions.
The above expectations
are not happening because politics in the province as the discussions
go, are continued to be run by either of the following: political
dynasty; people who have more personal interest to enrich themselves
rather than serving the people; those who are beholden to political
patronage; and those who have no vision or defined economic direction.
At the same time, the province has a problem of people continuing
to elect candidates who give more during elections while turning away
from candidates who espouse genuine reforms and new ideas.
PROVINCIAL POVERTY
INDEX PERFORMANCE
In the past, performance
is measured by calculating per capita income based on the Gross National
Product (GNP) and population. For more accurate measurement, this
was changed to "poverty incidence" based on calculated amount
required to satisfy food and non-food basic need. In 1997 however,
a new methodology was used to measure poverty incidence, now called
Human Poverty Index (HPI) incorporating in the calculation longevity,
education, and access to basic resources. This HPI supplements another
measurement called Human Development Index (HDI), which applies value
between zero (0) to one (1), 1 being the highest. HDI and HPI are
United Nation measurement standards applied to all countries. Statistics
are reported every three years.
Interpreting the
actual condition of the province based on these numbers can be a bit
confusing. Based on ranking however, it is easy to make statement
like; "Romblon is the poorest province in Region IV or one of
the poorest in the country." These numbers can also be used as
credit or to condemn elected officials.
Since I can remember,
even 30 years ago, Romblon has always been one of the poorest provinces
in the country. Its base economy has not really changed that much
over the years. What is interesting is that when performance is only
based on income, the province is one of the lowest in the country.
However, when other factors are included like longevity, education,
access to basic resources, and income not included, Romblon places
in the middle of the pack of 78 provinces. Romblomanons must have
learned how to survive with little income.
It reminded me
of Filipinos here in Hawaii. Normally, when you purchase a house,
your gross income has to be four times the amount of your monthly
mortgage or what we call in real estate 1 is to 4 ratio. However,
Filipinos largely because of the Ilocanos are allowed by mortgage
companies and banks to qualify for mortgage loan using 1 to 2.5 ratio.
If Filipinos were required to follow the standard rule, very few would
own a house.
THE DECLINE OF
MARBLE AND COCONUT INDUSTRY
The poor economic
condition of the province is not a myth, it is reality. The coconut
and marble industries most likely heavily contributed.
Decline in copra
price has practically brought this industry into a standstill. Many
coco-farmers had stopped producing copra because it is no longer worth
their while. Some say that the cause for this production decline is
due to the El Niño and others say natural cyclical coconut
plant production stress.
Marble production,
the main export product of the province also saw a huge decline.
Over the years,
these industries particularly coconut had supported many families.
Many children finished higher education from copra income. These industries
managed on their own with very little influence or interference from
elected officials. So now, what are these politicians supposed to
do?
GOVERNMENT STRUCTURE
Could the problem
be due to the fact that government structure or operation is probably
unintentionally repressive and so centralized that the governor makes
all decisions? It makes me wonder because there are department heads
and we have no idea what visions they have for their departments.
In my experience, department heads are the ones who make things happen
and execute what are mandated of them.
In my opinion,
the success of a local government lies in the hands of the civil service
employees, not with the Governor or Mayor. Take my situation for example;
I administer development of short-term and long-term plans. I make
sure that my region is able to keep up with the services required
by a fast developing community. I make sure that operation is efficient
as possible. I look for ways to save money like converting bio-solids
to energy and automating equipment operation. The Mayor has very little
influence on what we do, except that he has the final say on who to
award certain amount of construction contract (he has to select from
a list of six names submitted to him) and approve annual operating
budget. Well, the Mayor does other things; like be the star in ground
breaking and grand opening ceremonies.
So sometimes,
I am really confused when the blames are placed on the Congressman,
Governor, Vice Governor or Mayor. I am sure they have a lot to be
blamed for because they are ultimately responsible, but I think there
are many improperly placed blames.
CHANGE TO NON-TRADITIONAL
LEADERSHIP
Discussions in
RDL continued suggesting a change in leadership to non-traditional
politician.
Will this really
make a difference?
I would say yes
and no. If a non-traditional politician wins, the person has to have
enough clout to make a change. Otherwise, that person will just be
a hanging basket full of ideas.
It reminded me
again of another situation. A prominent Filipino from Hawaii, a very
good friend of mine, went home and won a City Council seat. He tried
to make changes, drastic changes only to be forced to give up his
seat because of continued threats to his life and his family. He told
me, he was not ready to be a hero. He is now back at Seattle, Washington.
ROLE OF THE EXPATS
One thing that
has not really been conveyed to Romblomanon expats by Romblon provincial
administration is if they are welcomed to participate in the province
building.
Expats in RDL
can keep discussing issues until hell freezes over and that is all
they are going to be: issues.
Somehow, Romblon
provincial and municipal administrations should get out of the box
and consider all the resources around them. This is not happening
at all and it even seems that RDL is a threat. I don't know why, and
I already ran out of ideas how to understand.
IS THERE HOPE?
My ideas are written
topsy-turvy. If you got to reach this point reading, I'll leave it
up to you. I believe only in one thing...result...result...result.
Let me just leave
you with one thought to ponder. In private industry, poor production
is frequently blamed on the workers and/or management, but in government,
poor production is blamed only on elected officials. Something does
not sit well with me.
